Vinyl Free Wallpaper

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I’ve been toying with the idea of wallpapering the wall behind my bed and was curious about what my wallpaper options are.   Frankly, I’ve never wallpapered anything but I’m always up for trying something new!

What I didn’t know was that most stock wallpaper is made with or coated with vinyl (PVC) – a product I stay away from.   The stinky smell from products made with PVC ( new cars, plastic shower curtains, etc. ) emits hazardous VOCs in your house contributing to indoor air pollution.  Our indoor air is already 5x more polluted than the outdoor air, let’s not add to it with PVC wallpaper!  As I often find, there are better alternatives – vinyl FREE wallpaper.

Mod Green Pod vinyl-free wallpapers use water-based inks on Forest Stewardship Council (FSC) certified paper and finish the product with a water-based glaze that can tolerate light wiping.  They’ve got some fun prints, check out the photo above!

grasscloth_imageFor more prints, Graham & Brown has 46 wallpaper prints that are VOC-free and printed on paper from managed resources.

I love this Juicy Jute grasscloth wallpaper – it’s got great texture and is made with jute, a natural fiber.  It also comes in 29 different vegetable dyed hues.  For other natural fiber wallpapers, check out raffia or hemp.

Traditional wallpaper paste has a bunch of chemicals, too, so try this great DIY recipe from Annie B. Bond.

  • •1 cup flour (wheat, corn, or rice)
  • •3 teaspoons alum
  • •water
  • •10 drops oil of cloves (natural preservative)

Combine the flour and alum in a double boiler. (If you don’t have a double boiler, set a smaller pan inside a bigger one that contains enough water that can be brought to a boil without overflowing). Add enough water to make a consistency of heavy cream; stir until blended. Heat, stirring constantly, until the mixture has thickened to a gravy texture. Let cool. Stir in the clove oil. Pour into a glass jar with a screw top. Apply with a glue brush. Makes 1 cup. Shelf life: 2 weeks refrigerated.